50 Magical Photos That Prove Cats Are Truly A Blessing, As Shared On This Instagram Page

Whether you are already a cat parent, are considering adopting one, or just simply love feline creatures, these adorable posts might make you believe that cats are divine. But it’s not just their quirky pictures that make these goofballs so interesting; there are so many intriguing facts that you may not know about them.

We’re not talking just about their well-known ability to always land on their feet; the phenomenon is known as the "righting reflex." It’s felines’ natural ability to spin around and land on their feet when they fall. Kittens begin to learn it at approximately 3 weeks of age. By the time they’re 7 weeks old, they are able to land perfectly.

Domestic cats are members of the Felidae family, which includes larger wild cats such as tigers, lions, leopards, and cheetahs. Despite being domesticated and adapted to living with their human friends, cats still share behavioral traits with their larger relatives.

Our little house pets share 95.6% of their genetic makeup with mighty tigers. Some of their behavioral habits, such as scent and urine marking and prey stalking, are similar to those of tigers.

Apart from their similarities with other animals, cats, like humans, favor either their right or left paws when performing different tasks. In an experiment by psychologists Deborah Wells and Sarah Millsopp of Queen’s University Belfast, which included 42 house cats, highlighted that 21 out of 21 male felines used their left paws when doing hard tasks like trying to open cabinets to access food.

However, one of them seemed to be ambidextrous. On the other hand, 20 out of 21 female cats used their right paw to perform the same task.

As humans, we enjoy a variety of food flavors, like savory, spicy, sour, salty, bitter, or sweet. This is because on an average we have 2,000 to 8,000 taste buds. But when it comes to our feline friends, they only have 473 taste buds. Interestingly, they can’t taste any sweet flavor. Compared to them, dogs have more taste buds—1,700, to be precise. So, don’t be sad if your tabby doesn’t care much about getting a lick of your ice cream.

You might have noticed your little kitty sprinting across the living room as if they could outrun you in a race. Chances are, you might be right. This is because they can hit speeds of around 30 mph (48.3 kph). To put that into perspective, Usain Bolt, the Jamaican sprinter who is known as the world's fastest human, averages around 23.5 mph (37.8 kph) in a 100-meter (328-foot) dash.

For 20 years, a tabby cat named Stubbs was the mayor of Talkeetna, a town in Alaska. The yellow and orange hedonist had zero qualifications and didn’t hold any legislative power. But he was loved by locals and tourists alike.

Usually, when someone passes away, they leave their fortune to their loved ones. But this was not the case for a UK millionaire who died in 1988. Ben Rea, an antiques dealer, refused to recognize his family in his will. He left £7 million ($12.5 million) for Blackie, the last surviving of his 15 cats.

But Blackie didn’t receive the actual money; it was split between three cat charities. They were instructed to look after all the needs of his pet until his very last day. As per Guinness World Records, Blackie is still the richest cat in the world. In case you are wondering, that sum today would be worth around £18.5 million ($32 million).

The sky's the limit for humans and cats. In 1963, a French cat braved the great unknown and went to space. On October 18, Felicette became the one and only feline to ever travel to space. She was launched in a Véronique AG1 rocket and flew nearly 157 kilometers (97.56 miles) above the Earth.

These pawsome cat facts will surely come in handy during any social gathering or trivia night. And we hope this fun dose of cat content made your day. Tell us about a random cat fact that you know! Which one of these surprised you the most?